


Spark that Burns so Bright

by antonomasia09



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Prequel Trilogy, The Penumbra Podcast
Genre: Crossover, Dancer Benzaiten Steel, Force-Sensitive Benzaiten Steel, Force-Sensitive Juno Steel, Gen, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, POV Shaak Ti, Steel twins as teenagers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-19
Updated: 2020-06-19
Packaged: 2021-03-04 04:53:52
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,184
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24808081
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/antonomasia09/pseuds/antonomasia09
Summary: Shaak Ti stops to watch a boy dance, and that might just change the Steel twins lives for good.
Relationships: Benzaiten Steel & Juno Steel
Comments: 8
Kudos: 27





	Spark that Burns so Bright

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks to alyyks for looking this over and making it better, and for always being up for conversations like "what kind of trouble could the Steel twins get up to with Baze and Chirrut" :D

There is a teenaged boy dancing on the sidewalk. Shaak stops to watch, delighted by the way the Force twirls around him as he spins and leaps. He’s grinning fiercely, exultation evident in every fluid arabesque and precise finger position, and he _shines_ in the Light in a way she’s rarely seen.

Sitting on the curb nearby is another boy, so similar in appearance that they must be twins. He’s got a hat in front of him with a few credits piled inside, but his attention is fully on his brother, just as entranced as Shaak. He also, Shaak notices, has a bruise darkening one cheek, and a split lip.

The music ends and the dancing boy stops, bowing gracefully and going over to his brother to take a sip from a water bottle as Shaak and several passersby applaud. The others continue on their way, most dropping credits in the hat, but Shaak moves closer, bending politely to both twins, hands pressed together. 

They look confused, and she gets a pulse of outright fear from the injured one, who scrambles up to place himself protectively between her and his brother. Shaak pauses, radiating calm and assurance. The dancing boy relaxes a little. The other one does not.

“I am Jedi Master Shaak Ti,” she tells them. “May I have the pleasure of learning your names?”

Their eyes widen upon hearing her title, and the one in front scowls deeply, but the dancer grins with excitement. “I’m Benzaiten Steel,” he says. “This is my brother Juno. We’ve always wanted to meet a Jedi.”

“No we haven’t,” Juno mutters, then grunts as Benzaiten elbows him gently in the ribs. The Force swirls around both of them, practically sparkling when Benzaiten smiles, but far darker and more agitated around Juno.

Mars is a Mid Rim planet. Hyperion City might not be the wealthiest part of it, but there’s no reason why these boys shouldn’t have been tested for Force sensitivity when they were young, and the results reported to the temple on Coruscant. Yet, Shaak can’t recall any Jedi being sent to Mars to investigate potential new initiates in longer than their lifetime. 

“I am glad to have helped you fulfill that desire,” Shaak says. 

They are too old now to be accepted by the Jedi for training, as much as Shaak longs to see Benzaiten learn to dance with a lightsaber. He would favor the acrobatic flips and leaps of Ataru, she thinks, while Juno seems more suited for the strength of Djem So. 

The Guardians of the Whills on Jedha do not have such age limits, though. She does not want to give these boys false hope without first talking to the Guardians, but she thinks they would fit in well with some of the other monks, particularly young Chirrut Îmwe and Baze Malbus.

“Please do not think me rude,” she says, “But have you considered receiving training for your Force abilities?”

Benzaiten and Juno turn to stare blankly at each other. “Our _what?_ ” Juno blurts out.

Is it possible that they didn’t get tested after all?

“My apologies,” Shaak says, inclining her head. “I assumed you were aware that you are Force-sensitive.”

“We can’t be,” Benzaiten says, still staring at his brother. Then, quieter, “We’re not anything special.” They reach out for each other simultaneously, hands meeting and holding tight.

“I believe every being in this galaxy is special,” Shaak says. “But yes, both of you are strong in the Force. You could learn to do many things with it, if you chose.”

“This is some kind of trick,” Juno says frowning. “We don’t have enough credits for whatever it is you’re proposing.”

Shaak’s heart aches at his suspicion. “I do not want your credits,” she says. “I am merely asking for your permission to contact a friend of mine at the Temple of the Kyber on your behalf. Whether or not you decide to go with him would be entirely up to you.”

“I think she’s telling the truth,” Benzaiten says, voice full of wonder. “You should go, Juno. You’ve always wanted to leave.”

“Not without you,” Juno says immediately.

Benzaiten hesitates. “But Mom…”

“Wouldn’t even notice if we never came home,” Juno cuts in.

Benzaiten reels back. “She would,” he insists. “She’s been better lately.”

Juno hunches his shoulders and shakes his head, and Shaak suddenly wonders if the bruise on his face came from a schoolyard fight or from someone who was never supposed to hurt him.

“Choosing whether or not to leave your home can be difficult,” Shaak says. “There is no need to make such a commitment yet. But do I have your permission to contact the Guardians, so that they might send a representative to speak with you?”

Benzaiten catches Juno’s arm and draws him away, and Shaak politely tries not to listen as they continue to argue. The Force wheels around them, chaotic, unsure of which twin to favor. 

Shaak blinks and Juno is standing there alone, much older. There’s a bottle in his hand and a patch over one eye, and the amount of grief and loss emanating from him is overwhelming. She blinks again, and both twins are braced against each other back-to-back on a battlefield, surrounded by bodies and bits of droids. Benzaiten’s lightsaber is a rich green; Juno’s is brilliant gold. A third blink, and she sees them as they are: young, hungry, and desperate for something other than the life they’ve been handed. Benzaiten is practically bursting with plans for the future. Juno can’t quite bring himself to believe he’ll have one. 

As they turn back to her and step closer, the Force quiets. “Yes,” Benzaiten says softly, and Juno glares at her as if daring her to change her mind.

Shaak beams at them both. “Thank you,” she says. “In the meantime…” Shaak was given a pouchful of credits for her mission to Mars, but she has nearly finished, and is confident in her ability to acquire whatever else she might need without the money. She pulls the entire pouch from her belt and drops it into their hat. 

Both boys gape at her. Juno shakes his head. “We can’t take this,” he says.

“Please,” she says. “Accept it in exchange for the pleasure of watching Benzaiten dance. I have truly never seen his equal.”

Benzaiten blushes, his cheeks flushing bright. “Really?” he says. “But you must have traveled to so many different planets.”

“Yet no one else moves with such passion and exhilaration,” she says, then adds. “As much as I would love to stay and watch longer, I am afraid I must depart. It has been an honor to meet you both.”

She bows to them, and they bow back. Benzaiten is effortlessly graceful; Juno is awkward and stiff, but mimics the angle of Shaak’s movements perfectly.

“Uh, you too,” Benzaiten says.

As Shaak smiles one last time and continues walking down the street, she hears Benzaiten whoop, and feels an explosion of joy, tempered by shock, and quiet, growing hope. She knows she’s made the right choice.

**Author's Note:**

> I feel a need to point out that Juno and Benten canonically have no confirmed father and therefore are obviously children of the Force and _therefore_ , collectively, the Chosen One.


End file.
